Severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus nucleocapsid (SARS-CoV N) protein has been found to be important to the processes related to viral pathogenesis, such as virus replication, interference of the cell process and modulation of host immune response; detection of the antigen has been used for the early diagnosis of infection. We have used recombinant N protein expressed in insect cells to generate 17 mAbs directed against this protein. We selected five mAbs that could be used in various diagnostic assays, and all of these mAbs recognized linear epitopes. Three IgG 2b mAbs were recognized within the N-terminus of N protein, whereas the epitope of two IgG 1 mAbs localized within the C-terminus. These mAbs were found to have significant reactivity with both non-phosphorylated and phosphorylated N proteins, which resulted in high reactivity with native N protein in virus-infected cells; however, they did not show cross-reactivity with human coronavirus. Therefore, these results suggested that these mAbs would be useful in the development of various diagnostic kits and in future studies of SARS-CoV pathology.
【저자키워드】 coronavirus, monoclonal antibody, Diagnosis, nucleocapsid protein, Severe acute respiratory syndrome, 【초록키워드】 IgG, pathology, coronavirus, SARS-CoV, monoclonal antibody, viral pathogenesis, Infection, diagnostic, severe, immune, nucleocapsid protein, Antigen, cross-reactivity, Protein, early diagnosis, nucleocapsid, N protein, virus replication, epitope, mAb, modulation, preparation, N proteins, C-terminus, N-terminus, linear epitopes, Host, FIVE, Cell, selected, found, related, assays, generate, expressed, suggested, reactivity, insect cell, SARS-CoV N, phosphorylated,